Growing up Gilmore
by Regina Halliwell
Summary: Lit. Java Junkie. Set during and after Keg! Max! Updated for New Year's Day. Read and review, please!
1. Keg! Luke!

Growing Up Gilmore

By Regina Halliwell

Chapter 1: "Keg! Luke!"

Summary: Stars Hollow High's Principal is in a more giving mood… so much, in fact, that he gives Jess one last chance to graduate.

Rating: PG-13 for mild profanity and adult situations

Pairings: This one's mainly Literati (Rory/Jess) but also has some Java Junkie (Luke/Lorelai) and later on some Paris/Tristan and possibly some Lane/Dave

Disclaimer: Don't own it. Wish I did. Just don't take my own plot lines and characters.

* * *

Jess knocked reluctantly on the glass part of the door leading to the office of Stars Hollow High's principal. He had been asked to go down here while attempting to buy prom tickets for Rory and himself. When no one answered, Jess almost turned and left, but then thought sadly about Rory and how disappointed she would be in him. After considering this, Jess knocked again, this time on the embossed letters on the glass reading, _Mr. John Parise, Principal,_ and this time received a strong reply. 

"Come in." Jess heard from inside, undoubtedly from the principal's mouth.

After sighing, Jess opened the door and stepped inside. His principal stood there, leering down at Jess disapprovingly, and them smiled and said, "Well, well. Jess Mariano. What a pleasure. Sit down."

Jess took a seat. The chair was hard and only served to remind him about how uncomfortable he was with this man who controlled his entire future and seemed entirely too joyous about that fact. When there was a dead, painful silence in the room, Jess took the initiative and declared, "I was just trying to buy prom tickets and they told me to go see you."

Mr. Parise only nodded and said to Jess, "So, the prom, huh? I wouldn't have taken you for someone who'd wanna go to the prom."

Rolling his eyes, Jess told his principal, "My girlfriend wants to."

Almost gleefully, his principal replied, "Oh, that's too bad." The way he said this, it sounded to Jess like he was taunting him, luring him in to break the news.

Sounding curious, Jess asked, "What, why?"

"Because you flunked out."

"I'm sorry, I must have misheard you. I what?" Jess demanded, standing up.

The principal smiled and stated, "You're not graduating, Jess. Prom tickets are for graduating seniors only. Guess your girlfriend's outta luck."

Jess, in a moment of desperation, spoke pleadingly to his principal, "Now wait a minute. I'm just a little behind. I can catch up, no sweat."

"You can't, you missed too much," the older man said.

Jess shook his head and told the principal, "It hasn't been that much."

The principal, almost pitying Jess at that point, stayed with his former decision, not faltering a bit as he disclosed to Jess, "Thirty-one days you've been out. Cutoff's twenty."

Shaking his head again, Jess informed the principal, almost angrily, "That's impossible. I knew I was going to be cutting it close, but there's no way in hell I missed 31 days! I wouldn't do that." Drifting off, Jess thought again of his girl friend.

As the principal watched Jess's behavior, he seemed to change his opinion of the boy. _Though a slacker and uninspired as they come,_ _this kid is really passionate. He must really want to graduate, or really love this girl of his._

"Mr. Mariano," the principal began, "Are you sure that you didn't miss that many days?"

Jess simply nodded.

"Very well. I'll check your attendance record." Jess's principal turned to the computer, and began typing. He clicked a few times, and then looked up. "Nope. 31 days. I'm not making it up."

Jess thought for a moment, and then asked, "Aren't those computers new? Do you have my file from before you got the computers?"

"We have it, but I don't see your point here."

"Just go check it already, will you!" Jess exclaimed.

The principal touched the speakerphone and said to it, "Someone get me Jess Mariano's file, please. The hard copy."

They sat once again in an uncomfortable silence until the office door shied open. A middle aged woman stepped through. After the woman handed the principal a manila folder with Jess's name on it, the principal told the woman thank you. She left closing the door behind her.

Opening Jess's file, the principal flipped through a few papers and then settled for looking at one. Jess could only assume it was his attendance record. He knew he was right when the principal said, "Hmm, well this is odd. The hard copy of your attendance record say you only missed 21 days. I'm going to check the dates of absence to see which one's right.

After a moment, the principal frowned and told him, "The 31 must be a typo. However, you still can't graduate. Cutoff's 20 remember?"

Jess saw his opportunity here. "Look, Mr. Parise. I have to graduate. I love my girlfriend. She would be show ashamed of me if I have to redo senior year. See, my girlfriend is most likely this years valedictorian at Chilton Preparatory School."

"Really. Who is she?

"Rory Gilmore, sir." As Jess said the sir, he winced. The whole penitent thing was just a charade, anyway. But showing respect to this man… so unlike him.

_The things you do for love… Jess thought, before realizing exactly what he had said. I love Rory Gilmore. Holy shit. I can't be in love. I've never been in love. But I am. I love Rory Gilmore. I love Ror—"_

"Did she ever go here?" Mr. Parise asked, drawing Jess out of his deep reverie. All thoughts of love were pushed aside as he mechanically gave the principal the answer to his question.

"Yeah, but she transferred a while back because she got in to Chilton." Jess informed Mr. Parise, not really knowing where this particular conversation was heading.

"Nice girl," Mr. Parise commented, obviously referring to Rory. "Exceptionally bright." After a moment of thinking, the principal asked Jess, "What is Rory Gilmore doing with a deviant like you?"

Jess, nonplussed, deadpanned, "Maybe you should ask her that."

The principal raised an eyebrow only slightly, but seemingly in a warning tone. Jess sighed, wiping his hands haphazardly on the sides on his jeans, and then began to speak again, less sardonically this time.

"I know I don't deserve a girl like her. Don't you think I have everyone in this crap town telling me that everyday? My own uncle tells me that. Rory… Rory's with me because she's free to be herself around me. No pretenses and whatnot. We're on the same level intellectually and psychologically. Plus, we share the good taste in literature and music. We just…click."

Mr. Parise, noting Jess's sincerity as he spoke, and the content of his words as well, spoke sympathetically. "Are you telling me that you think that you are as smart as Rory Gilmore and that you have read classic novels such as The Turn of the Screw, The Red Room, The Good Earth, The Grapes of Wrath, and The Great Gatsby? Because those five alone Miss Gilmore wrote impeccable literary essays on in her freshman year here."

Jess told him, almost arrogantly, "Countless times. I've read those, and about a thousand others. I'm personally a fan of Hemingway. That's what Rory and I do. We read, and we argue about what we read, and then we read some more. See," Jess finished, pulling out a paperback copy of The Old Man and the Sea from the back pocket of his pants and showing it to the principal.

Apparently astounded, Mr. Parise shook his head disbelievingly and then cleared his throat. "Are you that… um… well versed in your other subjects?"

Jess shrugged then said, "I guess. I'm best at English, but I'm competent enough in History. Math and science aren't too tough."

"What about languages?"

"I took a few years of French a while back. I wanted to take Spanish, but the classes were full and so I took French instead. I've got about two and a half decent years of that down. Of course, I barely managed a C, because anything higher would require some actual participation on my part." Jess said, and Mr. Parise nodded.

"Well, Mr. Mariano. What should we do here? Even with the typo, you are still one absence over the graduation limit."

"Look, Mr. Parise, I really need to graduate _this year_. Can't you make an exception for me please? Is there any extra work I could possibly do to catch up? I'd be willing to do it. I have to do it. If I don't graduate, I'll lose my home and my girlfriend all in the same day. I _can't_ do that," Jess pleaded.

The principal thought for a moment, though to Jess it seemed like an hour. While Jess didn't particularly care whether or not he graduated, he knew Rory did. And he loves Rory, so…

The thought of love entered Jess's mind once again, but he stopped that particular thought process as Mr. Parise's mind was made up and he spoke aloud, telling Jess, "There would be a tremendous amount of effort required on your part… very time consuming and you'd have to ace all your finals next week…"

Jess was overwhelmed. Or rather, the Rory inside his head was excited for him. He was incredibly lucky that Mr. Parise was in a good mood today. Standing up, Jess moved to walk out the door when Mr. Parise coughed. Looking at him, Jess saw the man was holding out his hand to be shaken. Jess took it and weakly shook his hand before turning around and ambling towards the closed door. As he clutched the doorknob, Mr. Parise said from behind him, "See Mrs. Kenney at the end of the day. By then I'll have spoken to your teachers and determined what you need to achieve in order to graduate."

Jess nodded affirmatively and moved as if to leave. While he was in the doorway, he realized something and turned around. "Does that mean I get prom tickets?"

* * *

As Rory and Jess headed over to the party, Dave, Lane, Zach, and Brian were still setting up. As Zach and Brian discussed microphone placement, Dave pulled Lane aside. He took her arm and led her into the empty dining room…away from Young Chui. Kyle had finally removed all the china and glassware, so the room seemed very plain and bare.

"Look Lane," Dave began, "I guess I'm just having some issues here with Young Chui. He's following you around everywhere like your slave. He likes you too much."

Lane frowned and told him, "I know. I'm sorry. I can't seem to get rid of him. I know he likes me, and I'm sorry I haven't done anything about it yet, I just don't know what to do."

He looked down at the floor for a minute, pensive. When he looked up again, Lane stepped tentatively forward and took his check in her hand and kissed him. When their mouths touched softly together, she slid her fingers through his dark hair and pulled him even closer.

Feeling this, Dave took his hand to her waist and slowly stroked the small of her back while deepening the kiss to a level they had never gone before. She eagerly responded and after a minute they stopped, both out of breath. As Dave gradually pulled away from her, he smiled, and then glanced at her with a questioning look of wonder. As he was about to ask why she had kissed him like that, she put a finger to his lips and told him, "I needed you to know, so that you're not worrying, that I am not attracted to Young Chui. Yes, he is Korean and nice and smart and he obviously treats me well but… well, Young Chui doesn't make me laugh. He isn't spontaneous or wacky and he couldn't to save his life name one Clash song for me. You are so much more than he could ever be to me."

Dave started to say something, but Lane butted in again, seemingly thinking out loud, "My god I just realized how incredibly cheesy that sounded. I am turning into one of those stupid romantic comedy movie actresses who have never had a real romance in their life but try to express those sorts of feelings anyway but end up making a World War II sized mess out of it and—"

Dave cut Lane's rant off by kissing her again. This one wasn't as passionate as the first, but more loving and sweet. When Lane finally stepped back, her eyes were lit up and she had an endearing smile on her face.

"I guess now I can't be jealous anymore, can I?" Dave asked, teasing.

"Nope. 'Cause now you know that I am yours and no one else's. Unless you think that I would kiss other guys like that…" Lane broke off, still smiling.

"Of course I don't. Then again, if you can hide a hundred cds from your mother for more than 10 years, you could probably hide an affair with the Korean kid from me."

While his tone was light, the mention of Mrs. Kim was disheartening. It took Lane's sweet smile right off her face. Now the issue wasn't Young Chui, it was the problem that Lane and Dave had been arguing about for a while: how to tell Mrs. Kim about their romance.

"Lets tell her." Lane made the suggestion calmly, though inside she had been dreading saying those words. The mere mention of the subject brought Lane's imagination go wild by thinking of all the possible ways her mother could kill her. "Soon," she added.

"Soon." Dave agreed. Then it was final; decided. "We'll tell her soon. But right now, lets go play some rock and roll."

* * *

Lorelai approached to door to a room at the Independence Inn. She knocked lightly, trying to mimic how she thought a maid should knock. A voice from inside called, "Yeah?" 

Lorelai, not noticing who the voice belonged to, answered, "Turn down."

The manly sounding voice responded, "Come on in."

The brunette opened the door and walked on in just as she had for the other turn down services that evening. While she closed the door, she began saying, "Hello there. This won't take long. Luke." While she had walked into the room like normal, the person she had found inside was the last she had expected.

"Lorelai."

Surprised to see the diner owner there, she asked, "What are you doing here?"

His reply straightened everything out. "You invited me, remember?"

"No," Lorelai stated. "I remember inviting you and Nicole. Now, you are here, sans Nicole. What's that all about?" As she finished speaking, Lorelai moved to sit in the edge of the bed next to Luke.

"I just, I was thinking. She asked me to meet her parents, you know, and I just, I was okay with it at first. Hut then, the more I thought about it, the more I realized how completely not ready I am for that sort of commitment. When I told Nicole that yesterday, she kinda flipped and broke it off."

"Ergo the whole her not being here part."

"Exactly," Luke said.

"Luke, I'm so sorry. I know you guys were on the verge of something really good." Lorelai did her best to console him but something inside her was not at all unhappy that Luke was now single. Brushing the feeling away, she turned to her best friend (besides Rory and Sookie of course) and hugged him.

Luke was so surprised. He tensed up as he felt her graceful arms holding him tightly. After a moment, he relaxed and hugged her back with the same strength.

Now Lorelai rested her head on his shoulder, and their hug was looser. Luke commented gruffly, "It's prob'ly for the best, anyway."

"No, Luke. Don't be like that. You liked her, and just because you weren't ready for a high level of commitment doesn't give her the right to break off a perfectly good, stable relationship with a sweet, sexy, maddening, flannel and baseball cap wearing diner man." Realizing what she had said, Lorelai blushed as she waited for him to respond.

Luke abruptly took in a breath as she finished her little speech. The end had left him speechless, so instead of words he pulled away in order to look into her eyes. He wanted to know what she had meant by saying those things about him.

_She couldn't possibly… no. If she was oblivious to me for six years, why would she be telling me this now?_

Looking into her bright blue eyes, he saw her sincerity. She gazed at him with affection, desire, and even sadness. While he was staring at her, she was staring right back. And what she saw scared her. As soon as she looked into his eyes, she saw the love and adoration he felt for her. Suddenly images flashed through her head.

She had flashbacks, scenes of the two of them arguing, bickering, though it was now obvious that they had been flirting all along. Scenes of Rory telling her how much Luke liked her, Jess telling them to get on with it and even asking if they were sleeping together because of the way she had described him. Random glances Luke had thrown her way suddenly were not passed off as coincidence, but as intentional. He was in love with her and she hadn't even noticed it in the 6 years they had known each other.

Luke could somehow tell what Lorelai was thinking. He noticed the way she looked, pensive and wondering. Then, feeling it was the right time, Luke took a chance and leaned in to kiss her.

* * *

The band was taking a short break from playing at the party. Zach and Brian had gone off to find a keg, and that left Lane and Dave. And… Young Chui. The pathetic Korean came up to Lane bearing a red plastic cup of water. He tried to hand it to her, but Dave cut him off. 

"Look Young Chui, this has gone on long enough. I know that you like Lane, but she is my girlfriend. Mine. So… that means that you can't have her. Plus, she's not really interested in you anyway," Dave said, a little harsher than he meant to.

"Lane?" Young Chui looked hurt. "Is this true?"

"I'm so sorry if I led you on, Young Chui. But, I'm with Dave, and I'm going to stay with Dave. There's no room for you in that picture. So I'd appreciate it if you would quit following me around and doing favors for me. I'm not going to change my mind." Lane answered him, though she almost felt bad for the kid.

Young Chui listened to what Lane said, then replied, "Mrs. Kim does not know about your relationship. She would never approve of you sneaking around. I am better for you than that American is."

Dave was getting a little agitated now, so Lane clasped his hand, trying to convey the feelings she had expressed to him earlier in the evening so he wouldn't get upset.

"Young Chui, Dave and I are going to tell Mama soon about us. Probably tomorrow. Now, I hope that you can understand that even though my mother would pick you over Dave any day, I wouldn't. I'm not. I am dating Dave, and there's nothing that you can do or say to change that."

"Fine, I will leave you alone." Young Chui agreed, though he didn't look particularly happy about it.

"Thank you, young Chui." Lane told him warmly.

"Yeah, thanks," Dave added, still holding Lane's hand.

Young Chui nodded and walked away sullenly. As soon as he had left the room, Rory, who had been standing a few feet away, walked eagerly towards the couple. She approached them and asked, "Well, what was that all about?"

Lane answered, "Dave and I are going to tell Mama Kim. We just had to get Young Chui out of the picture."

Rory nodded, "Yeah, he didn't look all too joyous as he left. I guess he really liked you, huh?"

Dave nodded to this and said, "Oh he liked her all right. He was about ready to build a shrine to her right here at the party."

Lane rolled her eyes at this and then smiled at Rory. "So where's Jess," she asked.

"Oh, he's around here somewhere. I think I saw him helping those idiots learn how to use that keg." Rory responded, giggling.

After she said this, Jess emerged from the kitchen holding two plastic cups and walked towards her. Rory smiled at him and then as she noted the two cups, she started to say, "Oh, I don't want any alc—"

Jess smirked at her and shook his head, tilting the cup towards her a little. When she saw what was inside, she smiled. It was some sort of carbonated clear soda… probably Sprite or 7up.

"You know me too well," she commented smugly.

Jess simply smiled back at her and then took a drink of his beer. She followed suit and sipped her pop.

"Okay, well. That's all great, but we should probably go back and start up the next set." Dave told the two of them. Nodding questioningly at Lane, she smiled back at him.

"You guys are great. We'll see you later." Rory told them as they walked off. When she turned back to Jess, he was gulping the remainder of his drink. When finished, he looked at Rory and took her hand gently, pulling her towards the stairs. She took another sip of her soda then set it down and followed Jess.

As he led her up the stairs, they passed Dean and Lindsay talking quietly on the landing. Dean briefly glanced at her and frowned slightly but then looked back to his girlfriend. Jess and Rory walked to the top of the stairs and then followed the hallway to an open room. Opening the door, Jess allowed Rory to go in first and then followed after her, shutting the door behind them.

* * *

Jess wandered towards the window, while Rory sat herself down on the bed. When he didn't say anything to her, she prompted him, "So, why'd you want to come up here, aside from the obvious, I mean?" 

Jess's brow crinkled in frustration immediately. He told her, "You know Rory, that's not why I brought you up here. I didn't expect us to have sex tonight you know. Maybe sometime, but… hmm. I just wanted to talk to you about school. You know, and stuff. Graduation stuff."

Suddenly Rory felt awful. She knew that Jess was… experienced when it came to sex, but what she said had been meant as a joke. Simply sarcasm.

She stood up, and took his left wrist in her hands and gently held it, running her fingers over his hand and forearm. He was tense and guarded, but she could tell he was hurt by what she had said.

"It's different with you, Rory. Right now, I'm not even ready to go that far with you, and I'm sure you aren't either. I don't wanna mess things up." Jess said, far more vulnerable than she had ever seen him.

She smiled sweetly at him. "I'm not ready yet either. But, I talked to my mom about. I think I'll be ready soon. And I'm already on The Pill, so we don't need to worry about that. But maybe, soon?"

He smirked. "Soon," he said finally.

The tension dissipated when Rory asked, "So, then what was it you wanted to talk about? Something about graduation?"

"Yeah." Jess stated noncommittally. "I was buying our prom tickets at school today when I got called down to the principal's office. He told me I had been absent one day too many and so I couldn't graduate."

Rory broke in, "But I thought you said that you had it taken care of. Jess, you have to graduate."

Jess shook his head at her. "Don't worry," he told her. "I'll graduate. I just have to move hell and high water to get to that point."

Rory frowned, asking, "What do you mean?"

"Well, for starters I have make up papers and projects to do in every subject, plus I have to ace all my finals." Jess expressed despairingly.

"Hmm. Well, if that's what you need to do to graduate, then that's what we'll do."

"I'm sorry, did you say 'we'?" Jess asked disbelievingly.

Rory nodded and smirked. "What, did you really think I was going to let you try and do all that work by yourself. You'd have given up after an hour. No, of course I'm going to help you."

Jess sighed, and looked at her as if asking if there was any way he could get out of it, and she just moved towards him.

Rory leaned in, drowning out all thoughts of disdain for school with her soft kiss. It wasn't intense, but it was loving and sweet. She pulled him towards the bed as she deepened the kiss. They sat down together, now making out passionately. Jess pulled away after a moment, and looked at her. Rory saw the look in his eyes and the feeling for her he couldn't express aloud. She said it for him.

"I love you, Jess."

After she had told him that, he smiled broadly and told her back, "I love you too, Rory," before pulling her mouth back to his for an deep kiss.


	2. Goodnight, Not Goodbye

Growing Up Gilmore

By Regina Halliwell

Chapter 2: "Goodnight, Not Goodbye"

Summary: The day after Lorelai and Luke express their feelings and Jess confesses to Rory that he loves her and that he wants to wait to have sex with her because he wants it to be special, and Lane and Dave decide to speak to Mama Kim. The prom is fast approaching…

Rating: PG-13 for mild profanity and adult themes and content

Pairings: This one's mainly Literati (Rory/Jess) but also has some Java Junkie (Luke/Lorelai) and some Lane/Dave, implied Sookie/Jackson and possibly later on some Paris/Tristan

Disclaimer: Don't own it. Wish I did. Just don't take my own plot lines and characters.

* * *

The next morning, Rory Gilmore woke up in her twin bed at home, underneath her covers, but still in her clothes from the previous night. Trying to remember why she hadn't changed into her pajamas before bed, Rory thought of how she had gotten home from the party.

The party. Jess.

He must have brought her home and helped her into bed. Rory smiled as she thought of her boyfriend and how vulnerable he had been in telling her he loved her. _He loves me,_ Rory thought wonderingly. _And I love him. I'm in love with Jess Mariano._

Still reflecting on her renewed relationship, Rory gracefully got up out of her bed, stretched, and then left her room to wake up her mom. She traipsed up the stairs loudly, still half asleep, and approached her mother's bedroom. Rory became puzzled as she examined the room through the ajar door. Lorelai's bed was messily made as usual, with random blankets and pillows strewn across the tangled sheets. It was obvious that her mother hadn't slept here tonight.

Rory's manicured brows furrowed as she thought of where her mother could possibly be. To the best of her knowledge, which, considering Lorelai shared everything with her daughter, was immense, Rory knew of no reason for her mother to be out all night. There was no current boyfriend for Lorelai to stay with, and the Inn was intact, and Sookie was fine… so where could she be? And who with? And why?

Shaking her head, Rory headed back down the stairs so she could get dressed. Once she had done so, Rory strolled purposefully out the door and walked towards the town diner.

* * *

Lorelai smiled sleepily as she turned to her side, subconsciously facing the man next to her. The slight movement stirred Luke, and he slowly woke up, not moving. He opened his eyes, grinning at the woman lying next to him, still in the depths of slumber.

One brown lock of hair slipped down across her forehead, covering an eye. Luke could only imagine what she was dreaming about. Luke thought to himself, _So, this is really happening now. I can't believe I kissed her. And I can't believe she kissed me back. I've been waiting years for this. Years._

Still thinking of the events that had transpired the previous night, Luke reminisced on how he had leant in slowly, tilting his head to accommodate hers, and kissed her sweetly. When the kiss had ended, she had looked into his eyes as if she was looking at him in a whole different light. Then she had smiled, and they had kissed again, which is how they had ended up laying on the bed.

Luke and Lorelai had held each other all night, though Lorelai had fallen asleep much earlier. Luke had simply laid there with her, stroking her hair and thinking of how lucky he was that she had finally discovered his feelings, and more importantly, she had reciprocated his feelings with strong ones of her own.

In all his musing, Luke had failed to realize that Lorelai had woken up. She wasn't yet fully awake, but she was awake enough to notice his mind wandering.

"Luke," she began softly, her voice scratchy from disuse, "What are you thinking about?"

He smiled and used his hand to move that hair out of her face. "I was thinking about last night," he stated. "About how lucky I am that you found me."

Lightening the mood, Lorelai teased, "Oh, you haven't even gotten close to getting lucky yet. At least not with me anyway."

Luke smiled again at her and asked, "Okay. So I'm not going to get lucky any time soon. Where does that leave us? What do we call this, I mean?"

Sighing, Lorelai told him, "I don't know. I just, now that we have it, I don't want to screw it up."

"I've been waiting years for this. You think I'm gonna do something to mess it up?" Luke asked her.

Pondering this for a moment, Lorelai answered his question with one of her own. "How long have you known you had feelings for me?"

Luke looked pensive as he quietly told her, "I have loved you since you walked into my diner six years ago, begging for coffee."

She stared at him as he revealed this, and as he finished she touched his cheek and then pulled his face towards hers, kissing him sweetly. He moved the rest of his body closer to hers, grasping her around the waist and holding her to him. This went on for minutes, until Luke pulled away slowly.

"So how's my morning breath?" Lorelai asked him, smiling.

"Perfect," he told her, continuing to hold her face. "We should go. Rory's probably wondering where you are and Jess is… well I doubt Jess gives a damn where I am, but I do have a diner to run."

Lorelai nodded in agreement and pulled herself into a sitting position on the bed. She straightened her clothing as Luke did the same.

As Luke gathered up his things, he suddenly realized something and turned back towards Lorelai, asking, "Do we tell people? I mean, should we keep _us_ a secret? What do you want to do?"

Lorelai thought for a second, then stated, "I have to tell Rory. She should know and I need her to talk to about it. You should tell Jess, too. I know you don't think he cares, but I think it would be good for you to tell him." Then she smiled flirtingly, and said, "Plus, I don't think I'm going to be able to stay away from you in public. So, I don't think we should hide it."

"Yeah, I know what know mean. In this town, people will find out soon enough anyway." Luke added.

"So, are we like, a couple now?" Lorelai asked bashfully.

"Yeah. We're a couple." Luke told her, smiling. He took the hand that wasn't holding her jacket and kissed it.

"Okay, well, should we, you know, get going now?"

Lorelai nodded, and they headed out the door.

* * *

At Luke's diner, Jess rushed around serving the myriad of people sitting and waiting. A woman caught his attention as he was walking past and said, "Excuse me, I'd like some ham."

Jess blew her off, obviously frustrated. "Be right back."

Protesting more forcefully, the woman said, "But I'd like some ham!"

Jess ignored her and instead handed a plate to a man at another table. Rather than being thankful, the man chose to question Jess, asking, "Is this what I ordered?"

Jess breathed shortly, "Yes," before waling over towards the table near the door. He spoke to the man sitting at the table, "Know what you want yet?"

Looking up at Jess, the brunette man stuttered, "Oh, uh, no, not yet."

Jess's voice dripped with vehemence as he sardonically asked, "You know what might help?"

"What?"

"Opening the menu." Jess told him.

Sarcastically, the man told him, "Yes, thank you for the tip." Jess shook his head before walking back over to the counter to speak to Caesar.

"I need ham," Jess stated blankly.

"No ham," Caesar commented.

Sighing in desperation, Jess told him, "We got a shipment of ham yesterday."

Caesar only repeated, "No ham," before shrugging.

Starting to become angry, Jess ranted at the man, "Caesar, there's a lady over there that has been saying she wants ham for the last twenty minutes and if I go back there empty handed, there's a fifty-fifty chance that she will eat me."

Shaking his head in slight apology, Caesar again informed Jess, "No ham."

"Then sew some bacon together 'cause that woman is getting ham." Jess was now almost shouting at Caesar.

Picking up a plate, Jess walked over to the man he had earlier given the wrong order to and paused. The man, not noticing the plate Jess held, began to tell him, "Excuse me, I don't think this is what I. . ." before Jess exchanged his plate with the one he carried, after which he amended, "Thank you."

Very impatiently, Jess held up the plate and addressed the entire diner, Who ordered this? Look in front of you. If there is nothing there and there should be, then this is yours."

"Oh, here." Jess heard the unmistakable sound of Kirk's voice, and headed over to him.

Jess gave Kirk the plate, then walked back over to the man at the table by the door. "Well?"

"What?" the man asked.

Crossing his arms, Jess requested, "You know what you want yet?"

The man muttered noncommittally, "I'll just have more coffee."

Nodding his head mockingly, Jess notified him, "More coffee coming up. Glad to make your dining dreams come true."

Taylor Doose walked in through the door, making Jess grimace and shake his head.

Instead of his usual annoyance, Taylor chose this day to sing obnoxiously, "'Oh, who can take a sunrise, sprinkle it with dew. Cover it in chocolate and a miracle or two, the candy man. Oh, the candy man can!' Yes, that's right, the candy man can 'cause he mixes it with love and makes the world taste good, and I, ladies and gentlemen, am the candy man. Your candy man. I'm mixing it with love and making Stars Hollow taste good."

"Move." Jess ordered Taylor.

Taking control of the situation as if he owned the diner, Talyor said, "Uh, in a second Jess. Give him a taffy. I come to announce to one and all that the day we all thought would never get here has arrived."

"Arbor Day?" This came from Kirk, across the room.

"No," Taylor replied, turning his head toward Kirk, anticipating another suggestion.

"The Day of Reckoning?"

"No," answered Taylor.

"The day the music died?"

Taylor finally glared at the strange man, reprimanding him, "Kirk."

"Give me a taffy."

"What?" Taylor questioned, seemingly bewildered.

"I've got a million of 'em. Give me a taffy!" Kirk threatened, though no one seemed the least bit bothered by it.

"As I was saying, the big day has arrived. The opening of Taylor's Old Fashioned Soda Shoppe and Candy Store! Tomorrow from noon to six, there will be fun, balloons, ice cream, and old fashioned penny candy for just one dollar a piece. Come at noon, stay all day. . ." Taylor continued on until Luke burst through the diner door.

"Why, Luke, I was just spreading the word about my new—"

"Shut up, Taylor, and get the hell out of my diner!" Luke immediately ordered the man out. When Taylor attempted to protest, Luke glared at him threateningly, and this time it was no joke. Taylor left immediately; saying under his breath, "Well, if that's how you feel…"

Luke sighed, and then turned to Caesar, "Are you _trying _to lose your job, Casear?"

Caesar shook his head, and then hurried back to the kitchen. After he had gone, Luke's eyes roamed around the diner. Before they could settle on the man at the table by the door, Jess had approached him and demanded, "Where in the hell were you, Luke. It's been chaotic in here and no one has the right order and there's a guy that won't order _or_ leave, and—"

"Jess, stop complaining. Caesar should work better now, and you can take a break while I get everything situated in here. Early morning rush should be over soon anyway." Luke told him.

"You're acting weird today. Whatever. I'm outta here." Then Jess headed upstairs, and Luke walked behind the counter to put on a new pot of coffee.

* * *

Rory had run down the porch steps quickly, and was now power walking to Luke's diner in hopes of finding Lorelai. As she rounded a corner, Rory glanced around to see Lorelai coming from the opposite direction. Rory increased her pace to catch up with her mother. When Lorelai spotted Rory, she too headed her direction.

"Mom," Rory gasped when she reached Lorelai. "Where were you? I was worried when I woke up this morning and you weren't at home. And why are you looking at me like that again? Did you do something dirty?"

Lorelai's grin widened, and Rory exclaimed, "You did you something dirty! With who?"

"You are not gonna believe this, kid. Luke! I spent the night with Luke. Nothing slutty happened but we're gonna start to date." Lorelai told her daughter.

"That's so great Mom." Rory congratulated, and then after a second, commented, "Thank God you two figured it out finally."

Lorelai slapped Rory's shoulder teasingly, and then the two continued to walk towards Luke's. "So, how did the party go last night?"

Rory's eyes opened wide, and she paused. "Oh, about that. Um, Jess told me he loves me. And I told him I love him, too. AndIthinkwemighthavesexsoon."

Stopping abruptly, Lorelai said, "Okay, I am going to completely ignore what I think you just said for a minute while we focus on the other thing. He told you he loves you?"

Rory nodded, and then, seeing her mother's skeptical look, continued, "He really means it, Mom. I can tell. And I love him. I just hadn't realized it before last night."

Lorelai sighed, and then asked softly, "Are you happy?"

Smiling sweetly, Rory replied, "Yeah. I am."

Lorelai say the innocence in her daughters eyes, then, and was reminded of Rory's last admission. "So what about the other thing?"

Rory was brought out of her reverie, and struggled to think about what Lorelai had mentioned. "Oh, that thing," she finally realized, now blushing, "I just, think it might happen—soon, with Jess. Not like tomorrow or anything, but soon… I know you hate him, mom, but I love him and--"

"Oh, Rory. I don't hate him. I mean the idea of you two doing the dirty isn't exactly the thing I want to hear, but I just want you to be happy. And if you require Jess to be happy, then that's what you get. I love you, kid. Just don't go making the same mistakes I did," Lorelai finished.

Moving to hug Lorelai, Rory told her, "I won't. I love you too, Mom."

Lorelai pulled away and smiled, saying, "Okay. Let's go have some breakfast."

Then, they both headed to the diner.

* * *

Luke smiled as he saw Lorelai enter his diner, Rory in tow. The two approached the counter as Luke pulled out two mugs and poured some fresh coffee. The girls paused, and Lorelai bent over the counter to kiss Luke delicately. The entire diner was shocked into silence.

Smiling, Luke cleared his throat. After a few more seconds, the diner was once again bustling, though the chatter was louder that usual, and it was obvious they were talking about Luke and Lorelai. Once Luke had seen to the people sitting at the counter, he led Rory and Lorelai over to one of the last two empty tables in the diner.

All three sat down, and Rory teased Luke, saying, "Luke, what are your intentions with my mother?"

Luke's face reddened significantly, and Rory told him, "Relax, Luke. I'm just kidding."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Luke spoke quietly to Rory. "Rory, if you wouldn't mind giving your mom and me a few minutes, Jess is upstairs."

"Sure, Luke. Oh— you don't mind if I tell him, do you?" Rory asked, understanding that Lorelai and Luke would want to spend time together without her.

He waved her off, signaling approval. As she walked upstairs, he glanced over at the only other empty table in the diner—the one next to the door that the mystery man had recently vacated.

Redirecting his gaze towards Lorelai, he smiled. "Hi."

"Hi."

"It's been a while," Luke stated sarcastically.

"Yep. About 20 minutes."

"Miss me already, do you?" Luke asked her, teasing.

"Not so much you as your coffee. Honestly, Luke. You should know by now that I need coffee immediately in the morning." She too, was sardonic, and as Lorelai finished saying this, her mouth tweaked into a smile.

"I know. You and your coffee addiction. It's going to kill you one day."

"So you keep saying, and yet here I am, vivacious as ever." Lorelai smirked.

"Yeah, well, you do look good for someone who got out of bed 20 minutes ago and hasn't had her morning pot of coffee yet." Slightly looking down at his lap, Luke blushed a bit as he said this.

"Luke Danes, you are flirting with me in a public place! I never thought this day would come. And by the way, I have already had a few cups of coffee. I took some from the Inn's kitchen before I left."

"Yeah, well. Don't expect me to give you a strip tease right here or anything, because I draw the line at clothing removal." Luke shook his head, speaking gruffly.

"Okay, Luke, now I know you didn't bring me over here just to flatter me and flirt, though I can't say I'm not enjoying it. What's going on?"

His smile went away just then. "I don't know what to do," he told her seriously. "Jess's dad is here."

Lorelai's brow furrowed, "You mean like here, in the United States?"

"More like here, in the diner."

"What! Where?" Lorelai demanded quickly.

"He's not here anymore, he left just after I got here this morning. Jess opened up 'cause I wasn't here and Jimmy sat over at that table all morning." Luke pointed to the still vacant table.

"Wait, does Jess know?"

"No, apparently Jimmy said nothing to him, just kept ordering coffee."

"Hmm. I like this guy already. Wait, do I like this guy?" Lorelai asked, puzzled.

"No. He's a deadbeat. He left Liz and Jess the day Jess was born, hasn't spoken to his son since."

"Ooh, that is bad. No wonder Jess has so many issues."

"Yeah. Anyway, I don't know what to do. Do I tell Jess, not tell Jess, ignore Jimmy, kick Jimmy's ass, what?" Luke broke off, frustrated.

"You should tell him, then Jess should decide whether or not you should kick Jimmy's ass." Lorelai advised.

Luke nodded, thinking. Then he went over back behind the counter, and, seeing as Lorelai's coffee cup was now empty, refilled it for her.

"Lorelai," Luke began. "I hate to ask this but can you watch the diner for a few minutes while I go tell Jess? I won't take long."

"Can I go behind the counter?" Lorelai asked, and Luke rolled his eyes, heading upstairs.

* * *

After Luke asked for Rory to leave, she had walked up the stairs and approached the door. It was quiet upstairs, and Jess had no music on. Knocking, she heard no answer and so opened the door and walking inside, closing it behind her.

Rory looked over towards Jess's bedroom. He wasn't there. Then, Rory heard a door opening and looked over toward the bathroom, where Jess was turning off the light and exiting.

"Hey." Rory said.

"Hey." Jess replied. "So, what are you doing here?"

"Well, I came up here to see you, and to tell you that your uncle and my mother are the talk of the town. They're a couple now," she told him.

"Finally," Jess said and laughed.

"I know what you mean. So, Luke wanted some alone time with Lorelai and asked me to come up here. Of course, I was more than happy to do so."

"That's what I like to hear," Jess said, smiling.

"How's your makeup work going?" Rory asked him, suspicious.

"It's good. I'm taking a break right now." Upon seeing Rory's glare, he amended, "Okay, so maybe I haven't started yet…"

"Jess…" Rory whined.

"Oh, come on Rory, It's the weekend. It's a weekend morning, actually. Really, no work should be done until after lunch, I think." Jess pleaded.

"Do you want to graduate, Jess?"

"Well, I wouldn't really mind—" Jess began, smirking.

"Jess! You want to graduate. You _will _graduate. You will do everything you can to graduate. Starting with your History final. What's it on?"

Sighing at Rory's determined face, Jess told her, "The Constitution, with focus on the Bill of Rights. I need to be able to recognize each part of the Constitution, explain the checks and balances each government branch has, and define and explain the first 10 amendments."

"Hmm. Well, have you studied any of it yet? What do you know?"

"I know the Constitution, I just am having trouble with the Amendments. Maybe if I could find an easy way to remember them…" Jess stated innocuously.

"Nice try, Dodger. No, you have to learn all this the hard way." Rory told him.

Upon seeing his disinterested face, Rory asked, "If we take a short break and, you know, will you concentrate and do your work?"

"Guess we'll find out, won't we," Jess asked rhetorically.

"Jess…"

"Fine, Fine. Twist my arm, why don't you. Sure, I'll be a nerd." Jess smiled.

Then Jess took Rory into his arms, back her up to the couch. She bumped the couch and immediately sat down, pulling Jess with her. She smiled at him sweetly, and leaned in to kiss him. He deepened the kiss immediately, greatly intensifying it as their tongues meshed. Rory leaned back, gently pulling Jess on top of her. She liked the feel of his weight on her. It made her feel safe.

Suddenly, Jess pulled back. "What?" Rory asked, lips swollen and eyes starry.

"Rory, I just. I don't want you to think… what I said last night… I _do_ want to make love to you. More than anything. Every time you smile at me, every time we kiss, it makes me want you even more. But just because we're not having sex… yet… doesn't mean we can't do—this."

Rory nodded. "I know. This is all we need for now. I love you."

"I love you too," Jess said. Just as he was leaning in to kiss Rory again, the apartment door opened, and Luke entered. He looked around quickly, and, spotting Jess and Rory in their compromising position, blushed deeply. Rory did the same, and looked down shyly as she lightly pushed Jess off of her.

"Well, gee, Uncle Luke. This sure is embarrassing." Jess stated mockingly.

Composing himself, Luke asked, "What the hell happened to the couch—chair rule?"

"Uncle Luke, surely I can't make out with Rory when we're on different pieces of furniture. On second thought, I'm sure it's possible, but I'm really not that flexible."

"Jess Mariano, I thought I made it perfectly clear that—" Luke began, but Rory broke him off.

"You know what? I'm just going to go downstairs with my mom."

"Actually Rory, I need to talk to Jess about something. It might be better if you stayed up here." Luke told her.

Rory shrugged and went to sit back down next to Jess on the couch. "So what is it?" Jess asked impatiently.

"Well, it's just. Hmm. Jimmy's here."

"Jimmy, as in my father Jimmy?" Jess queried.

"So, why is that bad," Rory asked naively.

"It's bad because Ji—" Luke began, before Jess cut in.

"Because the son of a bitch walked out on me and Liz the day I was born."

"Oh." Rory sobered, understanding. "Oh, Jess, that's… that's awful."

"Don't feel bad for me. I don't care. I don't need him. I went 17 years without him, and I turned out okay." Jess stated defensively.

"Well, there's some dispute about that," Luke added lightly.

Shaking his head, Jess stood up. "So, what does the bastard want this time? To apologize? To spend some quality bonding time with his little boy? The hell with that."

"Jess, there's no need to be—" Luke started.

"Luke, why would he come here? And now? I mean, I have so much stuff going on right now. I don't want to have to deal with him on top on everything else."

"I don't know, Jess. What do you want to do?" Luke asked.

"It's okay to want to see him, you know." Rory assured him. "He _is _your father."

"Hardly. Those sons of bitches that Liz brought home were more like fathers to me than Jimmy is. And that's saying something." Jess stated angrily, turning away.

"I'm so sorry Jess. Just know that whatever you decide to do, I'll support you in it. Now, I'll leave you manly men to talk things out. I'm gonna go see Lane." Rory told him sweetly.

Luke looked away as Rory approached Jess and kissed him tenderly, grasping the back of his head with her hand and running her fingers through his unruly dark hair. As the kiss ended, Rory looked into his eyes and smiled slightly, though her sad eyes betrayed her sympathy for him. "I love you," she added, after giving him a final peck and moving away.

"I love you too," Jess half-whispered while she was close enough to hear him. Luke turned slightly, hearing Jess's admission, and then nonchalantly turned back as if he hadn't heard. Rory cleared her throat and said, "Bye Luke. I'll see you later."

"See ya Rory. Tell Lorelai I'll be down there in a few minutes, alright?" Luke asked as Rory was leaving.

With a nod of assent, Rory went down the stairs. She got to the diner to find Lorelai standing giddily behind the counter, pouring a cup of coffee for Kirk. Rory picked up the cup of coffee she had left on their table before going upstairs and drank it all down, wincing. "Bleh," Rory interjected as she approached the counter.

"What's wrong, babe?" Lorelai inquired, smiling.

"Cold coffee. Ick."

"Want some more? I just made a new pot." Lorelai offered, but Rory glanced at her and she amended, "Okay so Luke made it before he went up. Whatever… Do you want some anyway?"

"No thanks, mom. I was actually gonna go see Lane now, if that's okay?"

"Sure hun. See you later."

"K. By the way, your boyfriend said to tell you that he'll be down in a few minutes." Rory commented.

Walking towards the door carelessly, Rory failed to notice Dean coming up to the door from the street ahead. Had she seen him, she wouldn't have continued walking innocently towards the door. But she didn't see him, so Rory managed to get all the way to putting her hand on the doorknob before it opened in front of her.

Dean stood, in his usual towering way, looking almost remorseful, and stared at Rory. "Can we talk, Rory?"

"Um. Sure, I guess, Dean."

"Somewhere private, I mean. If that's… if that's okay. Is that okay?" Dean stuttered uncertainly.

"Actually, I think it might be better if we stay around people." Rory stated, a little colder than she meant.

"Rory, I really think that what I have to say to you should be said in private, for everyone's sake."

"Fine. Where?"

Sighing, Dean responded, "How about your house?"

"Sure, let's go." Rory said, becoming more frustrated with every word.

As Rory walked briskly out the door, Lorelai looked after her with a worried expression on her face.


	3. Here Comes the Rain

Growing Up Gilmore

By Regina Halliwell

Chapter 3: "Here Comes the Rain"

Summary: Dean and Rory chat about her relationship with Jess, Luke and Jess confront Jimmy, and the Prom arrives.

Rating: PG-13 for mild profanity and adult situations

Pairings: This one's mainly Literati (Rory/Jess) but also has some Java Junkie (Luke/Lorelai) and later on some Paris/Tristan and possibly some Lane/Dave

Disclaimer: Don't own it. Wish I did. Just don't take my own plot lines and characters.

* * *

"Dean, I'm sorry. I don't mean to be rude, I was just going to talk to Lane about something kind of important." Rory told her ex-boyfriend as she led him into her house.

"It's fine, Rory. Don't worry about it."

"Okay, I just don't want you to think I'm trying to be mean to you or something. I mean, we are still friends, right?"

"Actually," Dean began, sitting down on the couch in the living room, "Since you bring it up, there is actually something I want to talk to you about, as a friend."

"Sure. Fire away."

"The thing is, Rory, that I still care about you. Not in that boyfriend way, just… I care. I'm worried about you and Jess. I just don't want him to, you, know… take advantage of you. Like, Prom's coming up really soon, and I just think he might…"

Immediately, Rory's face became stern. She shook her head at him disbelievingly. "Are you serious? You're really saying this to me! How dare you! You have no right to pass judgment on my relationship. I trust Jess, and that's all I need. It's none of your business what goes on between us."

Dean became defensive, and countered, "Now, Rory, I'm just looking out for you! He's going to try to sleep with you, and you, well, you can't possibly be ready for that. Especially not with him!"

"Dean, did it ever occur to you that maybe I want to sleep with Jess too? I mean, it's not the most unheard of thing in the world. He loves me, and I love him, and we're ready--"

"My God, Rory. We dated for years and never even came close to having sex. You see this guy for a few months and all the sudden decide you're ready to lose your virginity to him? He's going to sleep with you and then leave you. That's what he's like, Rory. You're going to get your heart broken. All for nothing."

"You are impossible! You don't know him at all! You see the aloof, sarcastic, obnoxious exterior and assume that he's a bad guy. Well he isn't. And he's a better man than you could ever be."

Hearing this, Dean opened his mouth to speak, but could find no words. Suddenly he just turned around and walked out of the house, slamming the door shut behind him. After he had gone, Rory went into her room, flung herself down on the bed, and sighed.

* * *

As they walked up to the motel door, Luke asked Jess, "Are you sure about this? I mean, I can always just call him up and tell him to get the hell away from here. You know, leave you alone."

"Nah. We should just get this over with. I wanna know why he's here, and then I want him to go. And never come back."

"Okay, it's your call."

"Go ahead, just knock."

"Here goes." Luke knocked on the door hesitantly. Jess leaned on the wall, out of sight of the doorway. No one answered. They waited. Finally, Jimmy opened the door and saw Luke.

"Huh. Luke. You, uh, well. You found me."

"I'm not the only one."

"What's that supposed to—Jess," he finished as Jess stepped into his sight. "I guess you guys should come on in. Sorry about the mess."

Jess and Luke both shrugged.

"So, Jimmy, what are you doing here?" Luke asked.

"Yeah, _Dad_, what are ya doin' here?" Jess added scathingly.

"I just…wanted to see you. How you were doing, that sort of thing."

"You wanted to see how I was doing," Jess demanded.

"Yeah."

"After all these years of never calling, never visiting, never caring at all, you just up and decided to come to Stars Hollow to _see how I was doing_! Wonderful. Just what I wanted. A great big family reunion. Next thing you know Liz'll be showing up."

"Listen Jess, I can't speak for your mother, but as for me, I've got something pretty good going on right now. I've got a live-in girlfriend, an almost-stepdaughter, a steady job, and an actual '4 walls and a roof' house. The only thing really missing from my life was you, so I decided to come and see if you were doing okay."

"I'm fine."

"That's it, you're fine?"

"Yup."

"Huh."

Luke, seeing that not much progress was being made, broke in and added, "Jess is going to graduate from high school soon, he's working two jobs, he quit smoking, he's read practically every book ever written, and he has a bright, beautiful, steady girlfriend."

At this, Jess turned to Luke and glared pointedly.

Jimmy, on the other hand, looked interestedly at Jess. "Really?"

"No, Jimmy, I'm lying." Luke stated sarcastically.

"Whatever, Luke. Hey kid, what's her name?" Jimmy queried.

"Rory."

"Hmm. Interesting name. You uh, you know, yet?" Jimmy asked, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

"Geez, Jimmy! God, no! You're a sick bastard." Jess responded angrily.

"Got it. But, you two are pretty serious, then?"

"Seems that way." Luke intervened, stating simply, "They're in love."

"Geez, Luke, way to make it sound like we're in some cheesy romance novel."

Luke grinned.

* * *

"Sookie, what do you mean there's no coffee?" Lorelai asked, bewildered.

"I mean, there's no coffee. The delivery guy never showed with the last shipment," Sookie replied remorsefully.

Sighing heavily, Lorelai thought about her options. _1, she could go without coffee… but for how long? 2, she could go to Luke's. Definitely liking that second option._

"Lorelai, all I can say, is if you need coffee that bad—which I know that you do—you could just go and get some. Just make sure you're back in time for the Shroen meeting."

"Yeah, I think I'm just gonna do that. What's with the Shroen thing again?" _Why am I not remembering this? I'm totally out of it. _

"Oh you know, they're a power couple that's flown in from Idaho for some sort of business. They requested a meal prepared for them and their client, so I'm making split pea soup, stuffed zucchini, and tiramisu. I was thinking about making some other entrées, maybe some buttermilk fried chicken with--"

"Sookie…"

"Sorry. Anyway, they'll be here at 4:45, so that gives us about 4 hours to do whatever before they arrive."

"Don't need to tell me twice."

"Actually, it seems today I do. What's going on with you Lorelai? You're acting weird. And something is definitely different about you."

"You mean you didn't hear?"

"Well obviously I didn't. What is it?"

"Luke. I'm dating Luke, Sookie."

The end of her sentence was cut off by Sookie's gleeful shrieks. "I am so happy for you! Uh, you two finally got it! After all these years. Wow."

"I don't even know how to respond to that."

"Oh come on, Lorelai. You're together now, there's no need to deny that your constant bantering was really flirting."

"I guess, maybe, you might… possibly have had the right idea."

"Yeah. Of course. Me and the rest of the town. Everyone saw it except the two of you!"

"Was it really that obvious?"

"Are you kidding? Since you came here, all you two do is blatantly flirt. The sexual tension was record breaking!"

"Okay, Sookie, well I'm gonna go see Luke now."

"Yeah, go see your man."

"Oh, be quiet, Sookie," Lorelai told her playfully as she walked out the door of the kitchen. As she headed outside, a group of people walked towards her.

"I'm so sorry, Ms. Gilmore is it, but it seems that our client isn't able to stay as long as my wife and I had hoped, so we took an earlier flight in. I hope it hasn't caused any trouble…" The blond man said to her.

Lorelai sighed, then reluctantly smiled professionally. "No no, none at all. We are all ready for you three. Why don't you both come on inside while we wait for your client to get here," she finished, leading them into the Independence Inn.

* * *

"Lane can not come out now. I have agreed to let her go to the Prom with David Rygalski, however until that time she is not allowed out." Mrs. Kim informed Rory brusquely at her door.

"Of course, Mrs. Kim. I was just wondering if I could maybe come in and speak with her – inside of course. If that's okay."

"I suppose that is acceptable. You may stay 5 minutes only. Lane must study for finals."

"Thank you so much, Mrs. Kim. You won't regret it."

"Yes, well, I have customers to attend to. Lane is up in her bedroom."

Rory nodded and headed upstairs, trying not to look too excited.

When she knocked on the door, Lane spoke from inside her room. "Mama, I'm studying just like I should be. Everything's fine. And thank you."

"It's me, Lane," Rory stated loudly enough for her to hear through the door.

"Thank God, Rory, I've been wanting to talk to you. I'm so excited. Mama Kim is letting Dave take me to the Prom. I'm going to my Prom. With my boyfriend! Yay me!"

"I heard," Rory told her, smiling. "Have you picked out a dress yet?"

"Nope. I don't get to. That was one of my mom's conditions. I get to go with Dave but she gets to pick out my dress. Knowing Mama Kim it'll probably cover every inch of skin on my body."

"Maybe it won't be that bad. She could surprise you and pick out something you actually like."

"Rory, please. The last time my mother and I shared an opinion about something, I got so freaked out I was dumped before Henry and I even started dating."

"Still, you and your mom have both changed. Maybe this time will me different. Just the fact that she is letting you go has to count for something, right?"

"I guess. It's just—wait, you came here for a reason. What's your news?"

Rory beamed. "Jess told me he loves me! And I know you don't really like or trust him, Lane, but I know he meant it and I love him too and--"

"Whoa, Babble Queen. Stop talking for a minute and let me process. So, you and Jess are in love… who said it first, you or him?"

"I did. I've known I love him for a while now, but just then felt like the right time to vocalize it. I wasn't sure if Jess felt quite the same way I did, but when he told me he loved me I knew. Oh, and you will not believe what Dean did this morning…"

A few minutes later, as Rory finished her story, Lane said, "Wow. This so tops my news."

"Nuh-uh Lane! I am so happy for you! We get to go to Prom together, well that is if Jess will still take me…"

"Oh please girl, he loves you. He'll go."

"I think so too. Or at least I hope so," Rory finished.

"Go see your man. I should go talk to Mama Kim about my dress."

"Good Luck."

"Thanks, you too."

They said their good-byes and Rory headed outside, towards the diner.

* * *

Luke had walked with Jess back to the diner after Jimmy had said his piece. They didn't speak; Jess was contemplating the situation and Luke knew that he wasn't the one Jess needed to talk to about it. When they returned home, Jess went straight upstairs, presumably to read.

It was about 5 o'clock in the afternoon when Lorelai burst through the diner door. "I'm sorry, I would have been here hours ago but these people at the inn arrived early for a business meeting… they weren't supposed to get in until now, but they took an earlier flight and didn't call, and--"

"Don't worry, Lorelai, it's not a big deal. I didn't have anything big planned, just a casual lunch, so we could talk."

"Even if you didn't plan something big, I'm still sorry. I missed you, Luke. I wanted to spend time with you."

"It's fine," Luke told her, kissing Lorelai on the cheek.

"Do you want to talk now? I'm here, we can chat."

"Sure, but can we go upstairs, this really isn't something I want to talk about around all these people…"

"Okay—Wait, are Rory and Jess up there?"

"Uh, yeah Jess and Rory headed up there about 10 minutes ago after walking around town for a while."

"Then, I don't really want to go up there."

"Why not?"

"Well, I don't know about you, but seeing my daughter making out or possibly more with her very experienced boyfriend is not exactly on the top of my to do list."

"Right. Storage room will work then, I guess."

"Ooh, dirty!"

"Ah geez."

"Come on," Lorelai said, pulling Luke into the store room.

After Luke told Lorelai what had transpired with Jimmy earlier that day, Lorelai surprised Luke by pulling him towards her suddenly. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him fiercely, passionately. He responded with equal fervor, and they embraced for minutes.

When he finally pulled away, Luke asked, 'What was that for?"

"Well, it just didn't seem right to go into a storage room with a guy and not make out," Lorelai stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Luke looked back at her and smiled.

* * *

"So, that's what's going on. I just thought you should know."

"I'm glad you told me. What are you gonna do?" Rory asked and she walked with Jess.

They sat down on the bridge, and Jess responded, "I don't know. I've been thinking, and, I just… who am I kidding—I have no idea what I want. I mean, this is the man who left me the day I was born. Do I really want to spend the summer with him in California?"

"He's your dad. It might be good for you to go see him."

"You think?"

Rory bit her lip for a moment, unsure of what to say to Jess. She knew that if she told Jess to go, he would, and vice versa. _I don't want to influence his decision…_

"You should go," Rory tried to state with conviction.

Jess looked at her, realizing her hesitation. "Rory, I wont go if you want me to stay. I want me to stay. You can't seriously think I'd want to leave after certain recent…developments."

"Just because you love me doesn't mean you should sacrifice getting to know your dad better."

Jess grinned, "And just because you love me," he retorted, "doesn't mean you have to let me go. Be selfish for once, Rory. Tell me to stay."

"No. No. We'll go to prom, and then we'll graduate, and after that you're going to get on a plane with you dad to California, and you're going to spend an entire summer with your father until you can write his biography. Then, and only then, can you come back. And when you do…" she trailed off, making eye contact, until Jess saw the desire and longing she held for him in his eyes, making him shiver.

"Well, aren't we feeling bossy today."

"You said be selfish. I want you here for prom, and graduation, and then I'll probably be sick of you so I'll want to out of my hair for a while. Eventually though, I'm bound to want to back. So really, I will be getting everything I want. Well, almost everything."

"We could, you know, before I leave," Jess suggested, grinning.

"Nope. It's too cliché to do it on prom night, and after prom it will simply be too close to your departure for me to revel in our new intimacy, so I think it's just best to wait until you return. Just don't meet any pretty girls in Caliornia, okay?" Rory laughed.

"I think I can do that. Don't meet any European boys…"

"I think you're all the guy I could handle right now," she replied, laughing. Beginning again, she added, "Good, well now that we're agreed, why don't we go back to the diner for a bit, and then I need to go prom dress shopping."

"I'm not opposed."

"Kay, well then we better hurry, we have to reach our make out quota for the day."

"Ha ha very funny."

"Come on, let's just go," Rory finished, pulling Jess in for a sweet kiss as they walked back to Luke's.

* * *

"So," Lorelai began, "Prom. Huh."

"Yup, it seems to be what all the cool kids are doing," Jess replied sardonically, and Dave nodded.

They were seated in the living room on the couch as they waited for Rory and Lane to finish getting ready. Mrs. Kim had reluctantly allowed Lane to go over to Rory's house after Lorelai had promised that Lane wouldn't walk out of the house in anything other than the dress Mrs. Kim had chosen for her.

They had been there for 15 minutes already, and there was a definite tension in the room between Lorelai and Jess.

Suddenly, Dave's cell phone rang and he excused himself to answer it, relieved.

Very bluntly, Lorelai asked Jess from her place in the chair facing him, "Are you going to take my daughter's virginity tonight?"

"If I said yes, would you try to stop me?"

Lorelai, obviously not expecting this particular answer, looked down for a moment to think. "No. Rory's old enough to make her own decisions. And if she decides to sleep with you tonight then--"

"We're not. Going to have sex tonight, I mean. We already discussed it and decided it was too cliché for Prom night."

"Oh. Well, good."

"But eventually, it's going to happen. Most likely after this summer. You two'll be traipsing around Europe and I'll be visiting my dad…"

"Yeah, Rory told me," Lorelai interrupted.

"So it's just better if we wait till things settle down again. If we still want to then, that's probably when it'll happen."

"Thanks. For telling me. I like to know what's going on with Rory, even if it is a bit unsettling."

"Sure thing."

"She loves you."

"I know."

"Do you feel the same way?"

"Is that really your business?"

"I think it is."

Jess sighed, annoyed. "Yes, I love her. I told her I did and I meant it."

"I thought so. If you hurt her, Jess," Lorelai began, before being interrupted.

"Look, Lorelai, I've never felt this way about anyone before. So I don't exactly know how to act. I don't want to hurt her, but I don't know how to avoid it, so…"

"Well, you could start by telling her what really happened with your black eye that one time. She said that you told her you got hit in the eye with a football, but I know it's crap."

"Does she know that?"

"Of course she does, she isn't dense. She just knew you didn't want to talk about it, so she didn't press it. So tell her what really happened. She deserves to know. Besides, knowing you it's probably something stupid like getting beaked by the evil swan."

Jess blanched, looking down.

"Oh my God. That's it, isn't it? Wow, that came outta left field!"

"I, uh," Jess grasped for something to say, flustered.

"Oh calm down, that evil thing's been biting people for years. It's no big deal. But just to spare you, I'll go check on the girls."

Jess nodded absently, and Dave re-entered the room.

"So what happened, man. You look… not good."

"Thanks. I've talk had 'the talk' with my girlfriend's mom."

"Hey, you had it easy, think about the mom I'll have to eventually do that with."

Both guys cringed at the thought of Mrs. Kim.

"Jess, Dave! Prepare yourselves, the girls are ready!" Lorelai shouted from the kitchen dramatically.

"Finally," Jess muttered under his breath, and Dave shook his head in agreement.

Land and Rory stepped out of Rory's room at the same time, and Lorelai moved away, so they could been seen.

Jess and Dave were in tuxedos, looking very sharp and spy-like. Rory was wearing a strapless periwinkle gown that fit her perfectly. It billowed a bit at the bottom, and there was a ruffle that separated the bodice from the skirt. Lane's dress was dark blue and a bit more conservative, though she looked stunning in it.

Rory, Jess, Lane, and Dave all just stood there for a minute staring. Finally, Lorelai said, "Compliments, anyone?" which snapped everyone out of their trances.

Jess coughed just came up to Rory and kissed her softly, murmuring how great she looked. Dave coughed and blushed, telling Lane that she was beautiful.

"Okay, okay, everyone out. I've had enough of this. Go, have fun at the Prom. Rory," she continued, addressing her daughter, "Forget curfew. Have fun and I'll just see you when you get home. Go get in trouble or something!"

"I'll try, Mom. Thanks."

As they headed out the door, Lorelai said goodbye, and then headed to the phone. She dialed Luke's number, and waited to hear his voice on the other end. "Hey Luke," she said after hearing his greeting, "Do you wanna come over and hang out? The kids are at the Prom, so I've got the house to myself for a while…"

* * *

As soon as they were out of the house's line of sight, Jess brought Rory to him tightly. "I just wanted to make sure that you know just how much I love your dress," he said, holding her waist and kissing her. It seemed strange to her, to be making out in the middle of the street with Lane and Dave only feet away, but Rory threw her caution to the wind and kissed Jess back.

Jess kissed her on the mouth first, his tongue dancing with hers, and then he moved down to her neck, sucking gently behind her ear, over her jugular…

The two were locked together for minutes with no sign of stopping, until Lane tapped Rory on the shoulder. "Uh, guys, not to break up the make out fest but we're kind of late for Prom already, so we should get going."

"Right." Jess agreed, but then whispered into Rory's ear, "It's just too bad that I can't _show_ you how amazing you look tonight."

Rory shivered.

"Come, let's just go, before this gets out of hand."

Back at attention, Jess put his arm around Rory's waist. Dave held Lane's hand, and the foursome walked through the doors and into the Prom.

The first thing Jess noticed was that the music was awful. Some shallow pop song was blasting throughout the room, and the four of them all hated it.

Lane approached Rory and told her, "Dave and I are going to go convince the deejay to play some actual music tonight… and then we're gonna go find somewhere quiet."

"Ooh, dirty. Bad girl tonight, huh Lane."

"Oh, this coming from the girl who was making out with her boyfriend in the middle of the street…"

"Okay, okay. You win. Go on with your bad self."

"Er, okay. Never say that again."

"I'm just kidding. Now go have fun."

"I will. See you later."

As Lane left, a slower song came on—"Bless the Broken Road" by the Rascal Flatts—and Rory threw her arms around Jess's neck, pulling him towards her as she moved towards the dance floor.

"Aww Rory, come on. This is country, it's pathetic…"

"I know, but I've heard it before and the lyrics are actually kind of sweet. Don't think about it. Just dance with me. Please?" Rory added, biting her lip innocently.

"Fine. Let's get this out of your system."

"Whatever you say…"

An hour later, Rory was finally tired of dancing. The last song had been a Clash song—apparently Lane and Dave had won the deejay over—and it wore her out as she and her friends danced.

Jess pulled her away from the crowd of people on the dance floor to one of the abandoned tables. They sat down and then Jess asked her if she wanted anything to drink. She said a short "yes" and he went to go get her something.

He had been gone for only a few seconds when Dean approached hesitantly. She was about to tell him off when he purposefully sat down next to her.

"Look, Dean, I--"

"I forgive you. I know that you didn't mean what you said earlier, so I forgive you."

"Dean, I--"

"You don't have to say anything, Rory. I completely understand. You still love me. I get it. What other reason would you have for saying all that the other day? Now, I get how you feel, but I'm with Lindsay."

"Dean!" Rory yelled, enraged. Jess heard her yell, and turned to see Dean sitting with his girlfriend. He headed towards them angrily, but Lane saw this and pulled him back.

"Calm down, Jess. I'll fill you in later, but Rory needs to get this out, and Dean needs to hear it. You'll understand in a second. Just trust me."

Still seething, Jess stepped back and let Rory go on, noticing she was so focused on Dean she hadn't even seen him or Lane.

"Listen, Dean. I already told you this, but you just don't seem to be getting it. I'm sorry about how we broke up, but I am over you. Totally and completely. I'm with Jess now, and it's going to stay that way. There is not even the slightest chance that I will ever get back together with you. I don't love you. I have for a long time. But I do love Jess. And there is nothing that you can say or do to change that."

Dean turned white. Reality came crashing down on him as Lindsay approached. "Dean? What's going on? Why did she say that stuff to you? Do you still… are you still in love with her?"

Dean didn't answer, but Lindsay understood. She closed her eyes for a moment and then turned and walked away. Dean didn't follow her. Instead, he muttered, "Bye Rory," and turned to walk out in the opposite direction.

"So, Rory, you wanna get out of here?"

"Where are we going?"

"I was thinking Luke's. I have a feeling he won't be there."

"Kay. Just let me tell Lane goodbye."

"Sure. I'll come with, say bye to Dave."

"You two are really getting along, aren't you?" she asked as they walked towards the couple dancing.

"Dave's cool."

"So that's a yes…" Rory questioned. Jess raised his eyebrows at her. "Right."

"Hey, guys," Dave greeted. "You leaving?"

"Yeah, we're gonna go back to Luke's and hang out. It's only 10:30, so if you want you swing by later, you can."

"Sorry, can't. Mama Kim said curfew's 11:00 tonight, so we'll probably leave soon." Lane replied.

"Okay. We'll see you guys tomorrow, then. Bye," Rory finished, hugging Lane.

"Bye, Dave."

"Yeah, see you, Jess."

* * *

As Jess led Rory outside, it started to rain. At first it only sprinkled, but when they were halfway to the diner it began pouring. Jess tried to hurry, pulling Rory along gently, but Rory stood her ground. When he noticed her lack of movement, he turned around.

"What are you doing?"

"I just want to be out here with you for a minute."

"Your dress is getting soaked."

"It's just a dress."

"But," Jess began.

"Jess, tonight has been perfect. I love you so much, and I'm so glad you took me to my prom."

"It was nothing."

"It was certainly something. You hate stuff like this, but you really are sweet and you made such an effort tonight. I just, I wanted to thank you." Finishing, Rory took his soaked face in her hands and kissed him—hard and sweet and rough (for all that Rory could be rough). There they stood, kissing in the rain.

"Well that was nice."

Rory giggled, and pulled him towards Luke's.

"I want cake." Rory stated.

"No cake."

"Kay, then I want pie."

"No pie either."

"How about doughnuts?"

Jess shook his head, smiling. "Fine. We'll have doughnuts."

"Upstairs."

"Okay, okay. We're feeling demanding tonight, aren't we."

"C'mon, let's go."

Once upstairs, Jess gave Rory some sweats to put on, and she did so in the bathroom while he changed. Then they got onto Jess's bed and ate doughnuts and talked. After about 45 minutes, Jess pulled out Ethan Frome (by Edith Wharton) and read to her.

Her voice put her to sleep after 20 minutes, so he put the book down and gathered her in his arms.

She murmured softly, "I love you," before drifting back into sleep. He kissed her on the top of her head, said, "I love you too, Rory," and fell asleep next to her.

* * *

Luke approached the Gilmore house anxiously. The way she spoke to him on the phone made him think that they would be doing more than talking tonight. But, then again he had thought that same thing when she had called him and asked him to help her find a chick that was running loose in the house.

Nevertheless, Luke went up the steps and knocked on the front door expecting just about anything. After a moment, Lorelai opened the door.

She smiled and took his hand, pulling him inside and shutting the door behind them.

"Come on," she invited, pulling him up the stairs.


	4. I'm A Real Boy

Growing Up Gilmore

By Regina Halliwell

Chapter 4: "I'm a Real Boy"

Chapter Summary: Graduation. Good-byes. Europe. Venice Beach. Some OOC-ness included.

Rating: PG-13 for mild profanity and adult situations

Pairings: Literati, Java Junkie, Lane/Dave and later Paris/Tristan

Disclaimer: Don't own it. Wish I did. Just don't take my own plot lines and characters. Again, credit goes to TWIZ TV for the portions of the show I took from their transcripts.

* * *

It was Sunday morning, the day after Prom. At the Gilmore home, clothes were strewn all over the floor in a trail leading upstairs into Lorelai's bedroom.

Wrapped up in the sheets lay Luke and Lorelai. Luke had not yet awoken, but Lorelai had spent the past ten minutes recalling what had happened the night before.

_She didn't know what possessed her to make the call. They had decided that they would wait to sleep together. She had thrown that idea out the window with her booty call._

"_Come on."_

_Those two words changed her life forever. She had practically dragged him up the stairs to her room. The door wasn't ever closed before she was unbuttoning his typical flannel shirt. Their mouths meshed and as soon as she pulled his tan tee shirt over his head her tongue was roaming the brawny expanse of his chest._

_As her mouth reached his abdomen he pulled her back and held her slightly away from his body. "Lorelai, what are we doing here? I thought…we decided—"_

"_We decided to not screw this up. It's new, and it's special. But I'm not going to let this screw it up. I want this, Luke. Right now."_

"_How am I supposed to oppose that?" Luke asked, smiling but breathless from the heat in the room._

"_You're not, that's the point. Now, are you going to take my shirt off or not!"_

_Almost reverently, Luke pulled up the hem of her shirt and drew it over her head. He stepped away to admire her but Lorelai grabbed his belt loops in her fingers and pulled him towards her, kissing him fervently._

As Lorelai remembered what had happened next, she felt Luke waking up next to her. His eyes fluttered open and as soon as he was cognitive, he pulled her closer.

He kissed the back of her head fondly. "That was amazing," he commented.

"It was perfect," Lorelai amended, and then pulled a bit out of his hold in order to turn towards him. On she faced him, she pressed her body against his, physically reminding him of what had happened the night before.

"Is that some way of telling me you want to… you know, again?"

"No," Lorelai answered, then added, "I mean, yes. I look forward to us engaging in that particular activity many times in the future, but right now isn't the time."

"What's going on right now?"

"Right now," she informed him, "It is the day after Prom. Or, for us mothers, the morning after Prom _night._ So I need to find Rory."

"Ah. Well, if you find Jess and Rory in a position similar to ours, don't kill him. That's my privilege as his uncle."

"I seriously doubt they had sex, but I still need to assure myself of that fact."

"Okay, well," Luke began as they separated and started dressing, "they're probably at the apartment, I'll drive us there."

"No, let's walk. It'll calm my nerves, and we can have some nice couple-y time."

"As if last night wasn't sufficient…"

"Oh, don't get all manly on me now. Last night was—incredible. Didn't we already go through this?"

"Let's just go, Lorelai."

"Don't rush me, I have to get pretty."

"You're beautiful as you are."

"Wow was that corny… but oh so true," she stated coyly, in a sing-song voice. She sauntered towards him and wrapped her arms around his slightly fleshy torso. He hugged her back, softly kissing her head as she held him.

After a few moments she pulled away to go into her bathroom and do her makeup. Luke went downstairs while she did this, and made a pot of coffee.

When Lorelai came downstairs, dressed and ready, she found a large travel mug waiting for her. Giddily, Lorelai approached Luke and kissed him thoroughly. "How sweet, you made me coffee!"

"Yeah, now let's get going."

"Ooh way to underplay the morning after sugariness."

"Lorelai, let's just go." He grumbled at her, but now she knew how lovable Luke was under all his exterior irritability.

* * *

Jess awoke the next morning with Rory's feminine form resting on top of him. Her head lay on his lean chest, her arm wrapped comfortably around his side. Her lower body, too, was entwined with his. Her left pant leg had ridden up in the night and was now situated mid-calf.

Jess's feet were cold; his comforter must have been pulled away as Rory shifted in sleep, and it no longer covered him past his ankles. Rory's delicate feet were tangled with his.

Her hair, taken down after the escapade in the rain following Prom, was draped naturally over his Sex Pistols tee shirt, and a few bangs fell into her face, hiding her eye from his gaze. She slept still, and showed no apparent signs of waking.

Jess noticed amusedly that she had drooled a bit onto his shirt. As Jess continued watching Rory, a need grew for him to visit the restroom. He didn't want to wake her, but Nature called. He tried to shift slowly, and in small increments so as to not disturb her.

When Jess had finally freed himself from her grasp, he wandered quietly into the bathroom. While he was in there, Rory noticed his gone and woke up.

She lifted herself up gingerly with her arms, glancing around Jess's room. Her dress, apparently dry, lay just outside his bedroom, and her shoes and purse were near the bed.

Rory rubbed her eyes and stretched. Her mouth was dry, her lips chapped. She strained to open wide her lips to find that when she opened them so wide, her bottom lip almost cracked. It was then she felt the drool, in the corner of her mouth. It was a small amount, but embarrassing nonetheless. Surely Jess had noticed.

Just as she wiped her mouth off, Jess returned to the room.

"Morning, sleepyhead."

"Morning. Sorry about the drool."

"Hey, I was fine with it… the Sex Pistols were somewhat offended, though," he stated playfully.

"Funny, Jess."

"I _am_ known to be humorous at times." Jess smiled.

Rory tilted her head, and told him, "I'll be right back. I'm gonna rinse my face and brush my teeth."

"Do you need a toothbrush?"

"Nah. I've been camping. I can use my finger. Can I use some toothpaste, though?"

"Sure. I'll be right here. Do you want anything?" Rory shook her head and thanked him and entered the bathroom.

Jess ran his hands through his hair, thinking. _I should tell her. It's not even a big deal. Why am I making such a big deal out of this? Jess, just tell her!_

Obviously Jess's thought seemed to last longer than he thought, or maybe Rory was just very quick at getting ready in the morning. Either way, she had returned.

"So…"

"So…" replied Jess.

"Um, I wanted to tell you something."

"Okay. Should we sit?"

"Sure—I mean, it's not something that requires sitting, like 'I'm gay' or 'I've decided to join the Army," but for comfort reasons, sure we can sit." His nervousness shone through as he prattled on.

"Wow. Slow it down, Jess." They sat down on Jess's bed.

"I lied to you," he began. Rory's look was somewhat reprimanding, but he continued on, explaining himself. "It's stupid, really. I just, when I told you I got that black eye from a football, well, I was lying. I really got beaked."

Realizing this was Jess's big admission, Rory took a breath. "Okay."

"That's it. Just, 'okay'?"

"Yeah. It's okay, Jess. I just want you to know that stuff like this isn't important enough to lie about. Just fill me in once in a while on what's going on in your life, truthfully. That's all I want."

Jess cleared his throat. He scratched his chin, and then replied, "I'm trying, Rory."

"I know. It's great. It's great that you're sharing this with me, and I want you to continue, but I know it's hard for you."

"Do you?"

"Yeah, I get it."

"So…" There was a long silence. "The swan, huh?"

"Don't mock me! Rory!"

"Oh, calm down, I'm just kidding." She slapped his shoulder lightly. "C'mere," she beckoned.

She kissed him hard on the mouth, pulled away, then kissed him again--softer this time, and sweeter. He wrapped his arms around her back, pulling her flush against him. Her hands caressed his hair as his fingers moved in circles over the small of her back.

Mid-kiss, the apartment door opened up and Luke stepped inside followed by Lorelai.

Lorelai's heart fell into her stomach when she saw how Rory and Jess were dressed, and how comfortable they seemed with each other. Maybe they had slept together… Still, she had promised not to freak out when the time came for Rory and Jess to sleep together, and so she masked her distress and smiled instead.

"Mom alert! All naughtiness, cease before I'm blinded!"

"Mom!" Rory was so startled that she needed a moment to compose herself.

"Lorelai," Jess greeted as Rory got it together.

"Jess, how are you?"

"Um, I'm fine…"

Lorelai lost her serenity at that moment and flipped. "Did you sleep with my daughter!"

"Mom! I thought you were going to be okay with it! And no, he didn't. Well, not in the biblical sense, anyway."

"Oh."

"Yeah," Rory said, almost scolding.

"So, I just flipped out for no good reason whatsoever?"

"Uh huh."

"Okay, well Luke and I are gonna be leaving now," Lorelai stated hurriedly. She pulled Luke the door, shutting it loudly.

"Hmm. Well, that went well." Jess pulled Rory into his arms once again.

Even though Lorelai's fear had not come to pass, Jess felt the need to assure of their relationship's validity. "Rory," he began, "She's never going to be okay about her daughter having sex. Never."

"But look at how upset she got even when we didn't have sex!"

"I know, but she'll deal. When we finally…" he gestured and Rory caught his meaning, "she'll learn to accept it."

"I guess."

"Don't be like that. If you want to be with me, have conviction about it. Don't worry about your mother! She's an adult, she can deal."

Rory's emotions took a complete 180 from anxious to irritated. She turned on Jess, "You're being insensitive! My mother is the most important person in my life. Her opinion matters to me! If you can't accept that, then…"

"Then what? Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

The tension in the room rose incredibly, and Rory and Jess were shouting at each other. After a minute or so of silence, Rory replied, "I don't know what I'm saying. I think we just need to… think. Just—I'll talk to you later, okay. Mom and I are going shopping today, but we'll be by tomorrow like normal."

"Fine," Jess said noncommittally.

Rory gathered up her prom dress and then left without another word to Jess. She didn't even kiss him good-bye.

* * *

Though Rory did show up at Luke's the next day for breakfast, the interaction between her and Jess was less than couple-y. Jess politely took her and Lorelai's orders and then brought their food. They didn't talk besides that, and the whole diner noticed how tense things were between the two.

When Jess had left the table after giving them their food, Lorelai turned to her daughter. "Okay, what was that?"

"What was what," Rory asked.

"That. The whole politeness thing. You and your boyfriend not sucking face."

"Mom!"

"What? It's a valid question. Spill."

"It's not like all we do is kiss, mom."

"You haven't even made contact today, let alone kiss. Come on, kid, what's up?"

"We're… just… we're kinda fighting."

"About what?" Lorelai asked, blissfully unaware of the tense situation.

"Umm, well…"

"Rory, tell me hon."

"I don't want to talk about it here. He might hear us."

"Honey, I don't think it matters, and he's in the back right now anyway. Just tell me."

"Um, well it's about you."

"Me?"

"Yeah, see, when you freaked out yesterday, I kind of questioned our relationship because I want you to be okay with me and Jess, you know, being intimate. Then Jess got mad at me and I suggested that maybe we should break up if he couldn't handle you being such an important part of my life, having an effect on my decisions," Rory finished, and noticed that Jess had come out of the store room.

Jess was ringing up a customer's bill when he heard Lorelai's voice. "Rory, as much as I love that you make me so important in your life, and I want to continue to be important, you can't sacrifice a wonderful relationship with a guy you love just because I'm not okay with you having sex. I'll accept it, when it happens. You can't let me stand in the way of your relationship with Jess."

He gave the person his change and then leaned down to pick up a pen he had dropped. That was when he heard Rory's reply.

"But, mom, I'm not going to feel right being with him when you're dead set against it."

"I'm not dead set against it, I just, I don't want you to end up like me."

"Mom…"

"Rory, it doesn't matter. Look, Jess is back. Go talk to him. I'll see you after work. Make up, I hate seeing you like this." Without leaving Rory any time to argue, Lorelai kissed her daughter on the forehead and grabbed her purse before standing up and swiftly exiting the diner.

When Jess heard this, he busied himself with cleaning off the counter, even though he had cleaned it only minutes ago and it wasn't yet dirty. He saw Rory down the rest of her coffee, and she even whispered to herself, shaking her head. After a few seconds, Rory seized her backpack and carried it over to the counter, where she sat down.

Jess slowed his cleaning. He wiped the last part of the counter and then turned to put down the rag. He turned his gaze back to Rory. She was fiddling with the hem of her skirt. He coughed, and she looked up. Leaning forward, Jess began, "So…"

"Yeah."

Rory held her head in her hands for a moment, then looked up at Jess. She bit her lip softly, and then sighed. "I'm sorry."

"Me too," Jess replied.

"I don't want to break up," Rory continued, "Things just got out of hand. I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, I'm glad you said something… we should work this out before we even consider, you know…"

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Rory said.

"So, are we okay?" Jess asked.

Rory nodded, and reached for Jess's hand. Jess allowed her to clasp his hand, though he felt somewhat awkward in the middle of the diner. He cleared his throat once more, ran his free hand through his hair, and nodded at Caesar, who understood Jess's meaning.

Jess let go of Rory's hand for a moment and walked to the edge of the counter. Rory stood up, puzzled, and followed him. He took her hand once more and led her into the store room.

He sat down on a crate and pulled Rory onto his lap. Very uncharacteristically, Jess tenderly took her cheek with his hand and stroked the soft skin before lightly kissing it. She tried to kiss him on the mouth, but he placed a finger on her lips and instead kissed her nose… then her chin… then behind her ear… then her neck. All soft, light touches. After a few minutes, Rory breathed out Jess's name softly.

Finally, Jess took Rory's lips with his own, at first lightly kissing only her mouth. Then Rory somewhat forcefully placed her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. For a few minutes they sat there, simply holding each other and kissing.

At last, Jess pulled away. "You should get to school. Finals week."

"You should too," Rory said, smiling.

Jess nodded, defeated. "Yeah, I guess I should."

Rory gently lifted herself off of Jess's lap. When he stood, she pulled him towards her abruptly, holding him by his shirt. She kissed him hard, and though it lasted mere seconds it was a strong kiss. Jess pulled back and asked her, "What was that for?"

"Good luck," she simply said.

* * *

"Who is it, Emily?"

"I don't know, Richard. My x-ray vision isn't working at the moment," Emily replied sardonically.

Richard gave her a look and explained, "I was wondering if you were expecting somebody."

"I wasn't expecting anybody," Emily responded shortly, before they both opened the door to find Rory there.

"Rory," Emily greeted, surprised.

"Hey Grandma, hey Grandpa."

"What brings you here on this busy day?" Richard asked.

"I have sort of a time-sensitive issue I need to talk to you about."

"Time sensitive. Well, come in, come in," Richard beckoned her into the living room.

"We were just getting ready for your ceremony," Emily stated as she sat down.

"And I was just retying my tie for the third time. No matter how many times I tie a tie, there's always room for error," Richard explained, chuckling.

"It's not an exact science, is it?" Rory asked.

"Nor an art form. It's pretty much nothing."

After Richard sat down, Emily asked, "All right. Should we be nervous?"

Rory, shaking her head, answered, "No, you shouldn't be. I am a little."

"Well, what is it?" Richard queried.

"I need money," Rory declared.

"You need money," repeated Richard.

"For Yale," Rory explained.

"You need money for Yale."

"Stop repeating everything she says," Emily berated her husband, annoyed.

"I'm sorry, I'm processing."

Rory took a breath and explained, "Look, it's a long story, but no other financing came through and all of the other options that Mom and I have are just. . .well, not good enough. So here's the offer - I would like for you to loan me the money for four years at Yale, and in return I will get a part time job and pay you in installments. I will continue this payment schedule after graduation increasing the payment amounts in proportion to my income. Plus, I will reinstate Friday night dinners with me. Every Friday night, I will be here, seven o'clock on the dot."

Smiling, Emily replied, "Well, how wonderful."

"We've missed you, Rory."

"I've missed you, too. So this should work out for everyone, right?"

"Absolutely. We're happy to do it."

"I don't want you to start to pay back the loan until five years after you graduate, though," Richard negotiated.

"I guess that's okay."

"Then we have a deal."

"Well, I should go," Rory said.

"Rory, does your mother know you're here?"

"No. This is my thing. I'll see you at the ceremony," Rory said before she left.

* * *

As Sookie and Lorelai walked to the seats, Sookie asked, "Where do you wanna sit?"

"Is there no special designated area for family and friends of the valedictorian?"

"Like a skybox or a velvet rope on one of the rows! Eh, oh well."

"Where are the boys?"

"Over there," Sookie pointed to Luke, Jess, and Jackson, who were standing by the Chilton building.

"Hey guys, get over here!" Lorelai called, loudly. "Here's a row. Let me see, how many seats do we need? Uh, you, me, Luke, Jackson, and Jess."

"That's five."

"Plus Picklepuss and Sauerkraut," Lorelai added.

"Your parents make seven," Sookie finished, giggling.

Jackson and Luke seemed to be off in their own little world, while Jess stood near them awkwardly.

"These stones have to be carved by hand," Jackson commented.

"Without the tools we have now. No electricity," Luke added, wonderingly.

"Just pulleys and fulcrums."

"Hey, Bob Vila, take a seat," Sookie asked her husband.

"Okay, we have to vow not to make fun of any of the kids because inevitably their family will be sitting right behind us just like at the play," Lorelai explained.

"Right. Ugh, the big-eared Romeo fiasco of '98. Gotcha."

As Luke and Jackson continued talking about the construction of the Chilton building, Lorelai's pager went off and she left to take care of it and see how Rory was doing.

* * *

Wandering through the Chilton halls, Lorelai found Rory standing near Paris and Co.

"Mom," Rory greeted.

"Uh, no, wait, go away. I wanna tell a bunch of other people that I'm the valedictorian's mom and I'm looking for you."

"Shh. I've got good news I wanna tell you real quick. Come here."

After pulling her mother into the hallway and away from all the chaos of the students preparing for graduation, Rory told her, "You're getting your inn."

"What?"

"Go put in the bid on the Dragonfly. You've got the money now, Grandpa's money."

"What are you talking about? How do I have money?"

"Grandma and Grandpa are paying for Yale."

"Now wait a minute."

Rory silenced her and continued, "I explained the situation, they totally understand, and they're loaning me the money for Yale. It's a done deal, so go make the call, put in the bid, before someone else does."

"Rory, honey, do you understand, the Gilmores do nothing altruistically. Strings are attached to everything."

"There are no strings."

"No strings?" Lorelai asked disbelievingly.

"No. I just have to pay them back starting five years after I graduate, and I have to start going back for Friday night dinners."

Lorelai shook her head, "Um, hello, Pinocchio, those are strings."

"Mom, don't you see? We're all getting exactly what we want. It's a win-win-win situation."

After a bit of arguing, Lorelai surrendered. "Okay, maybe, maybe it is. But just once, just once, I want you to get exactly what you want, and me to get exactly what I want, and them to get nothing."

"Well, we'll see if we can't arrange that sometime. But the ceremony's about to start, I better get back out there. And go buy that inn!"

* * *

"Uh, Mom, Dad, you've met everyone here. Sookie, Jackson, Luke."

"Hello. I don't know this young man, though."

"Oh, right. Well, Dad, this is Jess, Rory's boyfriend."

"Ah, so you're the boy my wife calls a scoundrel."

"That would be me," Jess replied.

"I'd like to get to know you a bit. Do you mind," Richard gestured at the empty chair next to Jess.

"Be my guest," Jess replied, and Richard sat down, Emily on his other side.

As soon as she saw that her parents had settled, Lorelai whispered to her friend, "Sookie, long story short, and a partially painful story at that, and hang onto your hat, but we can now put a bid in on the Dragonfly."

"What? Are you kidding? How? What happened?"

"I can't go into it now, but I'll tell you the whole story later."

"Okay, I've gotta tell you, even with the champagne and the Herb Albert, I've been depressed for days. I couldn't watch the Dating Game anymore."

"Well, that's all changed now."

"I'll go call the attorney. You sit back and relax and enjoy the graduation," Sookie said, grinning happily.

* * *

"Invited guests, fellow faculty, honored attendees and students, welcome to the Chilton Academy graduating class ceremony of 2003. This year's class is a distinguished assemblage, equal to or surpassing what has proceeded it. In its 200-year history, Chilton has not failed to produce a class that brings only honor to these grounds and to the academy's fine traditions. To begin, I would like to invite the student body president Paris Gellar to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Paris?"

Before going on stage, Paris whispered to Rory, "As his parting shot to me, Charleston never responded to the three aspects of the pledge that I had an objection to and considered rewriting. That's not going to stop me from using air quotes."

As the ceremony progressed, Brad was called on stage to speak. "Through good times and bad, Chilton formed us, brought us hope, honed our insight, gave us encouragement. Though my time here was briefly interrupted by my period spent on Broadway hanging out with Stephen Sondheim, I still consider Chilton the most rewarding experience of my young life. Now it had always been my plan in closing to recite a short poem I'd written," Brad said.

"But you reconsidered," Louise hoped from her seat.

Madeline agreed, "Come on, Brad. Go out a winner."

On stage, Brad continued, "But as I read it aloud, I realized the sentiments I wanted to share with my fellow students were better expressed in a favorite song of mine." At this point, Brad broke out song, "Cherish is the word I use to describe. . .bong, bong. Bong, bong."

"Oh, Brad," Rory grimaced.

"All the feelings that I have hiding here for you inside, bong, bong, bong. You don't know how many times I've wished that I had told you. . . " Brad continued on singing.

Later in the ceremony, Headmaster Charleston spoke again:"It's a distinct pleasure for me to introduce to you our valedictorian. This young lady was a second-year transfer from a modest school where she distinguished herself immeasurably. She is humble, hard working, competitive when need be, and unparalleled in her academic achievements. Ladies and Gentlemen, Rory Gilmore."

As Rory walked on stage, Sookie said, "Not crying, right?"

Lorelai replied, "Not crying. Keeping our cool so we don't miss anything."

"Tears get in your eyes."

"Then you miss things."

"So we're not crying."

"Not crying," Lorelai stated.

"Not crying," Sookie agreed even as they both started to cry.

Even Jackson broke in, "Not crying. Not crying."

"What?" Luke asked from his spot next to Lorelai.

"No crying," Lorelai told him.

"I'm not crying," Luke reassured her.

"Headmaster Charleston, faculty members, fellow students, family and friends, welcome. We never thought this day would come. We prayed for its quick delivery, crossed days off our calendars, counted hours, minutes, and seconds, and now that it's here, I'm sorry it is because it means leaving friends who inspire me and teachers who have been my mentors - so many people who have shaped my life and my fellow students' lives impermeably and forever. I live in two worlds. One is a world of books. I've been a resident of Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha County, hunted the white whale aboard the Pequod, fought alongside Napoleon, sailed a raft with Huck and Jim, committed absurdities with Ignatius J. Reilly, rode a sad train with Anna Karenina, and strolled down Swann's Way. It's a rewarding world, but my second one is by far superior. My second one is populated with characters slightly less eccentric but supremely real, made of flesh and bone, full of love, who are my ultimate inspiration for everything, and who get me through each day, giving me strength and support. Richard and Emily Gilmore are kind, decent, unfailingly generous people. They are my twin pillars without whom I could not stand. I am proud to be their grandchild. But my ultimate inspiration comes from my best friend, the dazzling woman from whom I received my name and my life's blood, Lorelai Gilmore," Rory addressed the audience.

"Uh oh."

"Hang in there," Lorelai said, tears in her eyes.

Rory continued, "My mother never gave me any idea that I couldn't do whatever I wanted to do or be whoever I wanted to be. She filled our house with love and fun and books and music, unflagging in her efforts to give me role models from Jane Austen to Eudora Welty to Patti Smith. As she guided me through these incredible eighteen years, I don't know if she ever realized that the person I most wanted to be was her."

"Not crying," Sookie repeated.

"Crying a little," Lorelai admitted.

"Crying a little, but not blubbering. That's what we meant when we said no crying, no blubbering."

"Thank you, Mom. You are my guidepost for everything," Rory stated from the podium.

"On the verge of blubbering here."

"Not doing too well myself."

"Not you, too," Lorelai sighed.

"I'm blubbering, you're freaks," Luke accused them.

But Rory was still speaking. "As we prepare ourselves today to leave. . ."

* * *

After Rory and Paris and the rest of the senior class had received their diplomas and the ceremony had ended, Rory ran to her mother and hugged her fiercely. Lorelai was crying even harder.

"Well, how was it?" Rory asked as she approached Jess.

"Do you mean your speech or my sitting next to your grandparents?"

"Both," Rory answered, holding him close.

"Well, the speech was amazing. I can see why they made you valedictorian. And, interestingly, your grandfather seems to like me. A lot. I have no idea why."

"Hmm, well I'll ask him in a minute how it went."

First, though, she went over and hugged Luke, thanked him for coming, and then did the same for Sookie and Jackson. After that, she approached her grandparents.

"Rory, that was lovely, what you said in your speech," thanked Emily.

"It was all true," Rory deflected.

"It was still wonderful of you," persisted Richard as he led her gently away from the group. Emily followed. They brought her to the parking lot where they presented her with her graduation gift: a new car which she was unable to see because almost every single other student had also received a car.

"Well, when I finally see it, I'm sure I'll love it. Thank you so much, Grandma and Grandpa."

"It was our pleasure, Rory. You certainly deserve it."

While Rory and Emily and Richard had been standing near the parking lot, Lorelai and the rest had noticed their disappearance. They finally caught up with them and Lorelai warned Jess lightly, "You better not crash this one too!"

Richard broke in and told Lorelai, "That's enough. The boy has been through a lot, and yet he is a remarkable young man. Let him be."

All were shocked to hear this defense of Jess's character, even when Lorelai had almost been joking. Almost.

The most surprised was Jess, who responded, "Um, thanks Mr. Gilmore, but she's right to say that, I'm not the most rel--"

"Nonsense, we all make mistakes. Let's not dwell on them, right Emily?"

"Right, Richard," Emily replied scathingly.

"And please, son, call me Richard."

Jess nodded, and that was the end of that. After a few minutes, Richard finally found the car. He gave Rory the keys, and she thanked him vehemently.

* * *

Only two days after Graduation, it was time for goodbye. Rory and Lorelai were leaving for Spain and Jimmy was bringing Jess back with him to Venice Beach. A whole summer apart. Rory and Jess weren't the only ones feeling the twinge of loss. Lorelai's evolving relationship with Luke would have to wait.

Letters, they said. And emails, too, when they had access to a computer.

Letters and emails would be all they would have for three months.

When all had been packed, and cars had been loaded, Luke and Lorelai diverted from the group of friends who had gathered to wish the Gilmore girls and the Mariano boys farewell.

"Don't meet any sensitive, romantic, European sophisticates while you're gone," Luke told Lorelai.

"Oh, I can't promise that, hon. Europe's chock full of their type. But, I can promise I won't abandon Rory and run away with Johnny Depp to live in France…"

"You'd give up Johnny Depp for me?"

"Well, you're worth it, aren't you Cool Hand?"

Luke held Lorelai tightly and then dipped her and kissed her deeply. "What do you think?"

"Oh yeah, you're worth it."

"Glad you think so."

"You should be. I mean, I could be living with Johnny Depp, so you better appreciate me."

"I do, believe me."

She looked into his eyes and saw all the love that he held for her within those sky blue depths.

"Oh, Luke…"

"I know. It'll be tough. Three months is a long time."

"But—"she broke in, before he continued on.

"Letters, I know. And emails."

"Okay."

* * *

For Jess and Rory, it was similarly difficult to say goodbye. But it had to be done. They strolled to their favorite spot, the bridge.

Sitting down with their feet hanging over the edge almost skimming the water, they held hands. _Funny_, Jess thought. _A year ago, and I would never have believed I would be in a relationship like this. We hold hands. We talk. We kiss… a lot. I'm in a real relationship. _

_Before, it was all sex and drugs and fights. Life sucked. Now, I don't know. It's kind of… it's intellectual conversations and literary arguments and kissing and music and working and school. It's different. Not worse. Just different. Better._

Jess was torn from his thoughts by nudging him with their entwined hands. "Whatcha thinking about?"

"Us."

"Uh oh."

"No, it's nothing like that. I just, this is all new to me. I've never been in a real relationship before. There have been girls, but nothing like this."

"I figured."

"Yeah, so… I just… thanks."

"For what?"

"For making me into this semi-normal teenager. For taking me from my horrible life and making it beautiful."

"Aw, Jess. I didn't know you were so sensitive."

"Poetry is cool," he protested.

"Sure, Dodger. C'mon, let's get back to the group."

He stood and helped her up. There were no sweet, tear filled goodbyes. No proclamations of love. Just a quick kiss and an "I'll see you in August. Don't forget to write."

And then they were gone. Jess and Jimmy headed for California, Lorelai and Rory to Europe.

They would have their letters. And emails. And then after the three months were over they would be together again.

* * *

A/N: Yeah, I know it sucks. Review. I don't want to keep writing if you think that it's crap, so please tell me. Thanks. Happy New Year. 


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